General taxpayers refer to taxpayers whose annual sales of value-added tax (hereinafter referred to as annual taxable sales, including all taxable sales in a calendar year) exceed the standard of small-scale taxpayers stipulated by the competent departments of finance and taxation of the State Council.

General taxpayers pay taxes according to the prescribed tax rate, and can deduct taxes with purchase invoices; Small-scale taxpayers calculate and pay taxes according to the simple method, that is, they calculate and pay taxes according to the sales amount and the prescribed collection rate, collect them from the buyer together with the sales price (without tax deduction), and then turn them over to the tax authorities.

VAT rates include: basic tax rate 17%, low tax rate 13%, and zero export tax rate. As far as daily collection and management is concerned, there are actually only the first two tax rates. The specific provisions of the tax rate are as follows:

(1) The basic tax rate is 17%, which is applicable to all goods and taxable services except low tax rate and zero tax rate.

(2) The low tax rate of13% is applicable to taxpayers selling or importing the following goods:

1, grain and edible vegetable oil;

2, tap water, heating, air conditioning, hot water, gas, liquefied petroleum gas, natural gas, biogas, residential coal products;

3. Books, newspapers and magazines;

4, feed, fertilizer, pesticides, agricultural machinery, agricultural film;

5. Other goods specified by the State Council.

After the promulgation of the Provisional Regulations on Value-added Tax and its implementing rules, the tax rate of some goods was adjusted from 17% to 13%. Mainly includes:

(1) agricultural products;

(2) Simple grain processing products;

(3) Mineral products and nonmetallic products (but crude oil, artificial crude oil and well salt are still subject to VAT at the rate of 17%);

(4) Agricultural water pumps and agricultural diesel engines.